Pats’ O-line played major role in blowout of Texans

For only the sixth time this season, the Patriots had their regular starting five on the offensive line on Monday night. It showed.

Comment

By
TIM BRITTON
Posted Dec. 11, 2012 @ 6:24 pm

For only the sixth time this season, the Patriots had their regular starting five on the offensive line on Monday night. It showed.

In what was supposed to be a major test in the AFC, New England rolled the Texans in no small part because its offensive line completely neutralized Houston’s pass rush.

It often seems as if the only way to slow the Patriots’ passing game is by getting pressure on quarterback Tom Brady. On Monday, New England’s offensive line made one of the best pass rushes — and one of the best pass-rushers — in the conference look inept.

J.J. Watt, the rare defensive player mentioned in MVP talk earlier this season, was nearly held off the stat page entirely. Watt didn’t record a sack and didn’t bat down a pass. As a symbol of how Houston’s night went, Watt’s forced fumble found its way into the hands of Brandon Lloyd for another Patriots touchdown.

“I don’t think we felt like we were going to be able to just [keep] him from making any plays,” offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels said on Monday. “We had a number of different players that had to step in and stand up and block him and I thought they all gave great effort, were competitive and really, that’s the plan. They have a good player; we have to stand up and we have to play against him. We have to play hard and I thought the guys tried to do a really good job of keeping him out of the middle of the pocket.”

It was a virtuoso performance from New England’s offensive line — the kind the Patriots are going to need to bring the Lombardi Trophy back to Foxboro. Heck, they’re going to need it on Sunday against the 49ers.

“The linemen did a good job of handling that front,” head coach Bill Belichick said on Monday. “It’s a very disruptive group — they’re fast, they’re quick, they’re athletic and they brought a decent amount of five-man pressure, a little bit of six-man pressure. They have a lot of speed and quickness and they mix in in games, and they can counter and all that.”

Even when the Texans brought extra pressure, New England didn’t have a problem picking it up. On the Patriots’ first touchdown of the game, the Texans came with five rushers. The offensive line handled the pressure on its own, allowing both Visanthe Shiancoe (lined up as a traditional tight end) and Aaron Hernandez (lined up in the backfield) to run routes without needing to help or chip. Hernandez sprinted to the flat, beating linebacker Bradie James for a pitch-and-catch touchdown.

“It was good teamwork, good offensive execution on a number of those plays,” Belichick said.

The Patriots’ run blocking also set the stage for play action — like on Brady’s 37-yard strike to Lloyd to make it 14-0 in the first quarter.

New England will face an even sterner test against San Francisco. In Aldon Smith, the 49ers boast one of the most prolific pass-rushers in NFL history. The second-year man out of Missouri has compiled an astonishing 33.5 sacks in 29 career games — and that’s despite not even lining up in the base defense for the Niners in 2011.

Smith’s 19.5 sacks this season are tops in the league and have him on pace to break the all-time mark of 22.5 set by Michael Strahan in 2001.

Smith isn’t alone, of course. Justin Smith, Ray McDonald and Isaac Sopoaga form one of the most disruptive front trios in all of football — stout against the run and capable of mounting a pass rush. Patrick Willis and Navorro Bowman may be the two best inside linebackers in the game, and they play alongside one another.

“They have a lot of good players everywhere: up front, linebackers, corners, safeties — a lot of disruptive players. They’re a real physical defense,” Belichick said. “Obviously, long yardage is not where you want to be against this team with their pass rush and multiples of zone, man, blitz, zone pressure, man pressure. They give you a lot of different things to work on. They make you earn all your yards. They’re really solid in everything.”